Winter is here, and in the cold weather it’s nice with a warm casserole. I’m sure this recipe will become a weekend favorite for you.

France/Swedish winter casserole

500g casserole meat

1 onion

Butter

1 tsp salt

Pinch of pepper

150ml red wine or beef stock

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp plain flour

250ml cream

2 apples

10 prunes

A handful of walnuts

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Methods

Peel and cut onions.

Brown the meat and sauté the onions in a frying pan with the butter.

Place meat and onions in a large sauce pan.

Add the salt, pepper, red wine (or beef stock) and soy sauce.

Allow the stew to simmer for 1 ½ hours.

Whisk the flour and cream and add to the stew.

Cut the apple into small pieces.

Roughly chop the walnuts and prunes, and add walnuts, prunes and apples to the stew.

Cook for a further 5 minutes.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley on top.

Serve with brown rice or potatoes.

Perfect for a cold, rainy winter day!!!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Winter sure has arrived, and in the cold weather it’s nice with a warm casserole. I’m sure this recipe will become a weekend favorite for you.

France/Swedish winter casserole

500g casserole meat

1 onion

Butter

1 tsp salt

Pinch of pepper

150ml red wine or beef stock

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp plain flour

250ml cream

2 apples

10 prunes

A handful of walnuts

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Methods

Peel and cut onions.

Brown the meat and sauté the onions in a frying pan with the butter.

Place meat and onions in a large sauce pan.

Add the salt, pepper, red wine (or beef stock) and soy sauce.

Allow the stew to simmer for 1 ½ hours.

Whisk the flour and cream and add to the stew.

Cut the apple into small pieces.

Roughly chop the walnuts and prunes, and add walnuts, prunes and apples to the stew.

Cook for a further 5 minutes.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley on top.

Serve with brown rice or potatoes.

Perfect for a cold, rainy winter day!!!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Winter sure has arrived, and in the cold weather it’s nice with a warm casserole. I’m sure this recipe will become a weekend favorite for you.

France/Swedish winter casserole

500g casserole meat

1 onion

Butter

1 tsp salt

Pinch of pepper

150ml red wine or beef stock

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp plain flour

250ml cream

2 apples

10 prunes

A handful of walnuts

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Methods

Peel and cut onions.

Brown the meat and sauté the onions in a frying pan with the butter.

Place meat and onions in a large sauce pan.

Add the salt, pepper, red wine (or beef stock) and soy sauce.

Allow the stew to simmer for 1 ½ hours.

Whisk the flour and cream and add to the stew.

Cut the apple into small pieces.

Roughly chop the walnuts and prunes, and add walnuts, prunes and apples to the stew.

Cook for a further 5 minutes.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley on top.

Serve with brown rice or potatoes.

Perfect for a cold, rainy winter day!!!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Winter sure has arrived, and in the cold weather it’s nice with a warm casserole. I’m sure this recipe will become a weekend favorite for you.

France/Swedish winter casserole

500g casserole meat

1 onion

Butter

1 tsp salt

Pinch of pepper

150ml red wine or beef stock

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp plain flour

250ml cream

2 apples

10 prunes

A handful of walnuts

2 tbsp chopped parsley

Methods

Peel and cut onions.

Brown the meat and sauté the onions in a frying pan with the butter.

Place meat and onions in a large sauce pan.

Add the salt, pepper, red wine (or beef stock) and soy sauce.

Allow the stew to simmer for 1 ½ hours.

Whisk the flour and cream and add to the stew.

Cut the apple into small pieces.

Roughly chop the walnuts and prunes, and add walnuts, prunes and apples to the stew.

Cook for a further 5 minutes.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley on top.

Serve with brown rice or potatoes.

Perfect for a cold, rainy winter day!!!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Do we ever learn to stop? I have a knee that’s been playing up since I was about 18, and believe it or not, because I went a bit too fast in the ski slopes.

I know what I can do and not do, and most of the time I’m smart. But 6 weeks ago I did the Mother’s Day Classic 8 km run, a lot of fun and I kept a pretty good pace considering the weather and all the people.

I know that for 6-7 km my knee is okay, but I thought one more km wouldn’t be too bad and the knee had been good for so long. So off I went, but as soon as I passed the finish line I could feel that my patella tendonitis, or jumper’s knee, had flared up.

So as the good personal trainer I am, I stretched it, massaged it, put anti-inflammatory cream on it, and rested. I have done active resting so I have used the bike and been running on the cross-trainer, and it has been going really well.

Until last Saturday, I thought the knee has been feeling really good so a 6km run was probably going to work. Yeah, right! This is where I should have said stop, give it a good rest for 6 weeks or so make sure the swelling was down and then started with a flat walk/run.

There you go, that’s my story for today and what have we learnt – listening to your body and move slowly return back to exercising after any injury. Isn’t it funny – that’s what I tell me clients all the time?


Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

I think my daughter and I are one of a kind, we love breakfast. Even though I would probably not have this frittata for breakfast you sure could.

We had it for dinner last week and it is really nice, light and quickly made.

Vegetable frittata

Serves 4

Prep and cooking 35mins

1 tbs olive oil

1 small eggplant, roughly diced

1 zucchini, sliced

1 green capsicum, roughly sliced

1 small red onion, roughly diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

Handful cherry tomatoes

6 eggs

½ cup grated cheese

Heat oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat.

Add eggplant, zucchini, capsicum, onion and garlic and cook for 8 minutes or until cooked through.

Toss through tomatoes and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Whisk eggs in a medium bowl, then whisk through cheese.

Pour egg mixture over vegetables in pan.

Turn heat to low-medium and cook for a further 10 minutes or until cooked through.

Place frittata under a medium-heat grill for 5 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with a green salad.

Enjoy!!!!!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Good news for chocolate lovers!

Chocolate is actually good for your heart. We have heard it for a while now, that a bit of dark chocolate is good for you, but now scientists at San Diego University have performed research confirming the statement.

They had 31 people eating 50 gr of dark chocolate each day for two weeks as they were doing the research. One group ate dark chocolate, one group ate dark chocolate that was heated, and the last group ate white chocolate.

The researcher could see significant results even though research time was very short. The group that ate dark chocolate had lower levels of blood sugar and bad cholesterol levels compared to the group that eat white chocolate and the group that ate the heated dark chocolate.

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au

Did you know that your runners have a “best-before-date”? If you have a look inside the tongue of your shoe you’ll actually see a date, a simple way to see if your shoe is past the due date.

But not only that, it also depends on your use of the shoe, how much you use them, how far you walk/run, if you walk or run in them, how heavy you are, if you have any injuries, how you run – as you can see your runners are much more than something you wear until they fall apart. Then it is TOO late!

Sometime I feel like a bitchy (sorry about the language) old schoolteacher when I am nagging my clients about their runners. But the truth is the old runners will not do any part of your body a favor, especially not your knees or feet if they are too old and they do give you the support they are suppose to give.

The sole of the shoes is a living material, and it will age even if you are not using the shoe. The sole has three layers: insole, midsole, and outsole. The insole is a thin layer of man-made ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA). The components of the midsole, which provides the bulk of the cushioning, will vary among manufacturers. Generally it consists of polyurethane surrounding another material such as gel, liquid silicone, or polyurethane foam given a special brand name by the manufacturer. In some cases the polyurethane may surround capsules of compressed air. Outsoles are usually made of carbon rubber (which is hard) or blown rubber (a softer type), although manufacturers use an assortment of materials to produce different textures on the outsole.

In general a pair of runners lasts for 2 years, but for someone running 6-8km 3-4 times a week the shoes will not last for more than 6 months, approximately 650km. After that time the shoe will have lost its cushioning, and is not good for running.  

Runners may begin to experience shin or knee pain on a regular basis after they have been using a particular pair of running shoes for a long time. This sensation may indicate that it is time for new runners. If pain and discomfort are beginning to become a regular problem, it might be worthwhile to try replacing the current running shoe with another kind to see if there is an improvement.

Something to think about:

·         Running shoes should not pinch any part of your foot. If they do, its time for new shoes

·         Break your new running shoes in gently, start out with short distance runs or you risk massive blisters and sore feet

·         Wearing your running shoes after they have worn down can injure you. Think of your shoes as a car that you must replace every 650 km

·         Never wear new running shoes for a marathon

Happy running!

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta

www.newfitness.com.au